Where Music Comes to Play

Archive for linux

The Sansa e200 is one of the best selling budget players ever and that shows on the number of loyal users it has. The original firmware is buggy and somewhat limited, so when Rockbox was released on the player many people praised it. Now a new player has joined the game, SansaLinux.

SansaLinux is a port of iPodLinux, and only works with the V1 e200 players. It’s still being developed, and so far LCD, audio and keys are working, while other features are planned or in development. It’s always nice to see custom firmware for players, so hopefully this project will make it all the way through.

Linux users have in the past been confined to using MSC based MP3 players, ones that act like basic drag and drop memory cards, so choices have been limited. In order to get MTP based devices to work Linux users had to used programs like Gnomad2, Rhythmbox, or Amarok to transfer media to these devices.

In the latest Ubuntu version 8.04 a simple command (sudo apt-get install mtpfs) will install full MTP support. MTPFS provides a full file browsing experience just like an MSC based device with the ability to browse playlists, write playlists, and write metadata to music tracks.

This is great news to MTP only devices like the Creative Zen family, but I also throw out a proposal for the Zune. The Zune uses a modified version of MTP called MTPZ. If this isn’t too modified from MTP, then could this be a slight hack to get full drag and drop Linux support to the Zune?

This is a surprise. At CES today, AOL and China-based manufacturer Haier rolled out their upcoming 30GB Smartscreens Media Device, a portable media player equipped with a laptop-esque touch pad, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi.

The all-metal PMP is “about the size of an iPod” and supports MPEG-4 and WMV videos and likely the typical set of audio formats (MP3, WMA, WMA-DRM), including those purchased and downloaded directly onto the device from the likes of Rhapsody, Napster, and Yahoo! over a wireless 802.11g connection.

An unnamed Internet-based service obviously (though unofficially) provided by AOL will somehow offer music suggestions while users of the device are listening to their tunes. How this will work is unclear, though we hope the option to be notified of song titles, albums, and other artists the system thinks we’d be interested in can be turned off. The device will also support free streaming Internet radio stations, which we assume will be exempt from all the suggestion-receiving fun.

Under the hood of the Smartscreens Media Device is an open-source application framework, codenamed SmartScreens, created by Tegic Communications (an AOL company) that runs on top of the unit’s operating system. If you can’t wait until the device is released later this year (second or third quarter), hop on over to SmartScreens Mobile to check out a video of the player in action.

Need a back-up OS while on the go? The Zen Vision:M’s ability to partition off some USB drive space makes it a great candidate for some flavor of Linux. The ZVM has the ability to set aside up to 16GB of space, but you really only need a minimum setting of 1GB.

Once you have your player partitioned, Knoppix installs much like on a USB drive with a slight tweak (see link). Many other Creative Zen players feature the USB partition option so this will work on those as well. What are you waiting for? Check out the guide below and grab yourself an extra OS to boot.

It’s not often when “This is a first” can be said with a straight face in the DAP world. But the upcoming 4GB Turbolinux Wizpy really is a first. It’s certainly not the 1.7-inch OLED display, FM radio, or DivX support that makes the device unique. And we barely blink an eye these days when another new player can play MP3, Ogg, WMA, and AAC formats. Yawn!

The stand-out feature of the Wizpy comes in the form of what’s preloaded on 1.5GB of the player’s internal flash memory . . . (wait for it) . . . Linux. Turbolinux FUJI, to be exact. And what good is bootable Linux without a sampling of what are arguably the best applications around? Yep, in addition to the plug-and-play OS, the Wizpy also comes preinstalled with Firefox, Thunderbird, and Skype. All this in a 3.3″ x 1.7″ x 0.5″ device that weighs a mere 2.1 ounces.

The Turbolinux Wizpy will sell for about $250 when it hits Japan in February.

abi Editor's Choice

SanDisk Sansa Clip+

The Clip+ has a fantastic little form factor; somewhat cheap in build quality but very rugged. The interface is simple and relatively straightforward. The features on the Clip are more or less average, however it supports the alternative Rockbox firmware which provides tons of additional options (gapless playback, Replaygain, playlists, Last.fm scrobbling, etc). Read the full review or go ahead and buy it.

Cowon J3

The J3 is a fantastic PMP with a very nice AMOLED screen and tons of features. It sports Cowon's trademark BBE sound enhancements, and offers a customizable user interface with strong support by our user community. You can usually find it at Amazon for the best price - and don't forget to check out our review.

Microsoft Zune HD

Sure, many of us are not big fans of the walled garden, but there are a lot of great things going on with the Zune: sturdy hardware, ultra easy to use user interface, and a media player that is worthy of Editor’s Choice. You can check out our Zune HD review or stop by our Zune forums for the latest info and gossip.

Phonak Audéo PFE

Phonak Audéo PFE offer outstanding clarity and precision; natural, dynamic mids and treble, and decent bass for a single armature in-ear phone. They handle dense, complex music very well. The PFE work well with most acoustic and some electronic music genres, but bassheads might have to look at other alternatives. They're great for sports as well, since they fit very securely. Check out our review.

Hippo VB

The Hippo VB (Variable Bass) offers a serious subwoofer for on the go, right in your head. They don’t just deliver generous quantities of punchy, textured bass, but good audio quality over the whole frequency range with decent clarity and exceptional soundstage. Exchangeable bass ports let you customize their sound to your liking. Read our in-depth Hippo VB review.

Soundmagic E10 / E30

The Soundmagic E10 and E30 are basically right in the middle between the Phonak PFE and Hippo VB - not too analytical sounding, not too bass heavy. The E10 provide a bit more bass, the E30 a bit more clarity. Both come with a very fair price tag considering the sound quality they deliver - a great choice for the audio aficionado on a budget. Read our E10 and E30 reviews for more info.